From one photography collector to another: a venue for thoughtful discussion of vintage and contemporary photography via reviews of recent museum exhibitions, gallery shows, photography auctions, photo books, art fairs and other items of interest to photography collectors large and small.

Thursday, March 11, 2010

Auction Results: Contemporary Art, March 9, 2010 @Sotheby's New York

Given the soft performance of Sotheby's post fair week Contemporary Art sale, it appears that collectors must have spent their money in the booths and then went home. With a buy-in rate for photography near 50%, it is no surprise that the total photo proceeds fell under the estimate range, even with a Cindy Sherman film still (at right) pulling in some extra dollars. The mid range lots were particularly weak, with only 12 of 30 in that price zone finding buyers.

The summary statistics are below (all results include the buyer’s premium):

The top photography lot by High estimate was lot 89, Cindy Sherman, Untitled Film Still #63, 1980, at $80000-120000; it was also the top outcome of the sale at $218500 (image at right top, via Sotheby's).

84.00% of the lots that sold had proceeds above or in the estimate range. There was only one surprise in this sale (defined as having proceeds of at least double the high estimate):